Trip

Day Hike - Dungeness Spit

Enjoy the best hike in the Pacific Northwest, to the Dungeness Spit Lighthouse, where we see a variety of birds and marine life, have a free guided tour of the historic lighthouse and have our lunch at a picnic table with an indoor restroom nearby.

Meet at 10 AM at the kiosk at the trailhead, reached by driving west through Sequim on US 101, turning right at Kitchen-Dick Road (signed Dungeness Recreation Area), turning left at Voice of America Road (also signed Dungeness Recreation Area) and driving to the parking lot at the end of the road. Each car parked there must display a National Park Pass or pay a nominal parking fee, which was $3 in 2018.

Leader's notes

The first half mile of the hike is on a forested trail to a viewpoint overlooking the spit. Then we descend 130 feet to the spit and hike five miles on hard sand on the spit to the lighthouse, where we will have an hour to eat our lunch at a picnic table on the lighthouse lawn, take a guided tour of the lighthouse and visit historic exhibits on trails around the lighthouse. A nice indoor restroom with a flush toilet is available to use in the lighthouse building. The return hike is via the same route. During the drive home, there is the option for a refreshment stop at the iconic Hiway 101 Diner in Sequim. The date of this hike was selected because the favorable tide schedule permits us to walk on hard sand the entire time we are on the spit and still have an hour to spend at the lighthouse.